> I just passed my private pilots licence on Friday :-)))

Congrats - placate the missus ?

> I'd be cautious about doing anything "automated" to an aircrafts
> engine.If an accident occurred and your device was the suspect....
> the mind could only boggle at the legal implications that would follow

I'd also be cautious about anything that affected the engine.
However this device merely alters the pitch of the propellor. If
it fails (touch wood) then all that happens is that either the
status quo is maintained or the pilot re-takes control. There's
no way the plane can just drop like a stone. I'm told it's quite
normal for the pilot to be "involved" only for take-offs and landings.
The rest of the time he's more or less just along for the ride,
the same as the passengers

> My limited experience with "real world" projects is that they
> take a lot of time to debug and fine tune. Aircraft time is
> "expensive"

Oh how true that can be. But Mr X is in the air a lot anyway
and for the reasons mentioned, it's not a device that in any
significant way affects the running of the plane. Obviously
there will be some fine tuning required, but the system the
PIC has to deal with is not overly-complicated, predictable,
and relatively slow to react

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